Original Village People member busted in Daly City

Published 12:00 pm, Friday, July 15, 2005

This is a 1979 photo of the pop group The . On bottom, right to left are: Glenn M. Hughes, Felipe Rose, David Hodo. On top right to left are: Alex Briley, Victor Willis and Randy Jones. (AP Photo/HO)

This is a 1979 photo of the pop group The . On bottom, right to left are: Glenn M. Hughes, Felipe Rose, David Hodo. On top right to left are: Alex Briley, Victor Willis and Randy Jones. (AP Photo/HO)

Original Village People member busted in Daly City

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(07-15) 12:00 PDT Daly City (SF Chronicle) -- The Macho Man who co-wrote In the Navy did some time in the clink this week after police reportedly found drugs and a pistol in his car, authorities said today.

Victor Edward Willis, the original policeman and lead singer in the over-the-top disco group the Village People, was arrested late Monday after Daly City police found the loaded weapon and what they believed was crack cocaine in his vehicle, said police Lt. Matt Bushong.

Willis, who could not be reached for comment today, was a founding member of the Village People when they formed in New York in 1977, and told police as much when he was arrested, said police spokeswoman Sgt. Carol Sloan. He co-wrote Macho Man, YMCA and In the Navy -- the bands biggest hits -- but faded into obscurity after leaving the group in 1980, just days before the filming of its film Cant Stop the Music.

Willis also was wanted on an outstanding $15,000 felony warrant for possession of narcotics -- which led to his arrest and the subsequent search of his vehicle, Bushong said. Willis didnt have a valid license or identification and at first lied about his name and residence, according to a police report reviewed by the Associated Press. It was unclear what prompted the initial traffic stop, Bushong said.

The musician was booked into the San Mateo County jail and posted $100,000 bail Tuesday on suspicion of six felony counts, including possession of a firearm, driving on a suspended license and transportation of cocaine, the Associated Press reported.

Willis was replaced by Ray Simpson, who remains in the Village People today, and has had a couple of run-ins with the law in the years since. He was convicted of possessing drugs in 1990 and acquitted three years later of raping a woman after she ended their one-week relationship.

The Village People were more famous for their attitude than for their music, which was rife with double entendres and gay themes. They were perhaps most famous for their costumes, which flaunted gay stereotypes while parodying iconic masculine figures. There was the construction worker, the Native American (complete with floor-length feathered headdress), the cowboy, the soldier and a biker decked out from head to toe in leather and chains.

After group members became openly identified as homosexuals, Willis, who was married, was asked to leave, he said in a 1988 interview with The Chronicle.

The band and its hit In the Navy proved so popular that the U.S. Navy considered using the tune -- with lyrics that include Dont you wait to enter / The recruiting office fast / Dont you hesitate / There is no need to wait / Theyre signing up new seamen fast -- as part of a recruiting campaign. It ultimately scuttled that idea amid public concerns in some quarters that the band was morally dubious.